Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-07-27


Fort Worth lG1 we're once the tH-ie
bottom of the Atlantic ocean, frLH
and were made by the chem lILH
icsl precipitation Of line sed- l1-iH =
iments and the remains Of t-LH
millions Of sea shells, which l-ftt
even now constitute so L~fH
much of the rocks, and can VIA.
be picked ID in abundance WIN
around the Fort. BY a III IL
study of these shells and 3 H.
comparison with those now II L
found lying In the depths Of n
the ocean, we hud that they Il III.
! are mostly extinct forms, "A
! belonging 10 an age which, lfS
although but yesterday in IN
/ geological time, are many ITA
million years Old. Since these NJ "
rocks were made in the deep I#J
| sea many more have been
| deposited upon them, and 4
all have gradually risen
| from the ocean bottom snd #I
| become high land, while the Ia
shore of the ocean has EsA
gradually receded, probably + Mt1
no faster than it is to-day Y s7I
at Galveston. The eleyat- .iFI4
ing force was to the west lE 10
ward probably the same -ifELi,
that lifted ;he Rocky Noun Li's-
tains. and hence these rocks L3fL4
have a slope, or dip, to the ElH-j
southeSstWard as shown in kil-1
the cut, fact 10 be Temem- Et
bered fN-
Not only have the rocks i2
been elevated slowly from H. ii
the oceans bed and may gHl b.
still be going up tor all we i=iCt
know but they are con
stantly being washed away n
with every shower The rand
rocks we now see are but
remnant OF the great Tor
nation which formerly ex- ETH
listed and west of Weather
ford - they have been en- -
tireiy washed, exposing Eth
older formations f4} near
MilIssp |J.. This older for t
nation instead Of consist
ing Of soft limestone and tr
marls, as is the case with r--
the rocks around Fort
Worth y which will not Mi
allow the rainfall to soak h
into them, bat 10 now to
the sea, are loose, porous
sands that drink up the /.
rams, and below the ground
are always full Of moisture
Now these sandstOnes are
exposed throughout Upper
Cross Timbers and in the h
coal regions west of Pa4O -B
Pinto, Jack, Wise and other counties.
but they dip beneath the umestOnes ~.
upon which Fort Worth is situated, that
west Of WestherfOrd, and by
The time they reach Fort Worth they are
from 300 20 500 feet beneath the city.
Beneath these porous sandstOnes are
Otner beds Clays sd harder limestone =
which, like the Oc!S above them, are i'm
Derylous to mois,'se, forming a hard pan
which prevents tlsmOisture from sink
ng lower than the sandstOues. The rain
.alI soaking into tS.se sands By the action
II gravity and ca Nsary attractions near
y gil held there, ind wells dug from
above into them Invariably get water.
pom the ismiljaEf Principle Of water seek
ng its own level hereyer the surface
)f the country is Higher above the SEES
evel than the surface exposures of these
sandy strata, as is the case with all the
surface wells Of ComanChe, Hood. Bos-
lue, Ersth, Wise, SOmervelI and Dor
IONS OF Montague, Thorp Springs and
he springs ST Glen Rose and other COun-
les, this water will not Cow to the sur
ace. Wherever the surface level OF the
we'll is lower than the exposures of the
sands, as is the case IN the valleys of the
lily Of Fort Worth, the WateI will flow 20
he surface and make artesian wells.
The Upper Cross TimbeTs may be con
Idered the receiving reservoir for the
rtesian wells Of Fort Worth and
iCinity. Speaking more exactly,
he exposures of certain sandy
trata Of the Upper Cross Ttmbers
Onstitute this reservoir, for no minute
urVey giving the extent Of these eX-
'OsuTes has Ien made, and i. is probable
nat ~ "a &pot coincide Throughout
With the eAt FL sae Upper Cross Tim
eTs.
The dife1 in altitude between the
uriace lev Fort Worth's artesjsn
wells aud tfa3of the receiving reservoir
S so sligo the water seldom spurts
o great he It, and in wells dug on the
ighest hills does not quite reach the
urtace, and snence the greater prooa-
flity of scouting fJwing we'll in the
Jw valleys.
Such is 8 brief statement Of the geol-
gy of the srtesian wells Of Fort Worth
rom it, however, can be drawn some
rOader deductions for the bened. of all
ne area influenced by the same geologic
OnditiOns. Where srtesi2n wells can or
sn not be found Is one of the most i'm
OrtsDt questions to the people OF Texas, .
nd 9 determination OF these points, .
Inch is 8 simple question Of geologic /.
lgjneering, would be worth millions Of (
oIlsrs to the people Of our state, both /
+ saving useless work and costly expert .
and by directing others to bore /
18th cer,:S8sNa.where they are now
raid TO trg go ain water UnfOrtu-
ately we have Tot even geographic maps
wing the relative altitude OF points, al
Ouga the Dlted States geological sur
.yOr is slowly making one; and worse
t, We have hardly any detail of the
rats except the few which have point
out as the accidental accompaniment
my work last summer But believe
ere is q very narrow and fertile region
tending through Denton, Fort Worth,
eJurne, Meridian and Gstesyille,
longing 70 the Fogt Worth sEeal Taica